(GA.266) Powder Horn
ARTIFACT NUMBERCCN 910670
Country of OriginContinental Army
Date5 Nov 1776
MATERIAL(S)Horn, Wood
Dimensions2 3/4 x 2 3/4 x 12 in. (7 x 7 x 30.5 cm)
Credit LineU.S. Army Artifact, CCN 910670
DescriptionThis is a powder horn with an inscription. It is light brown with a dark spout and base plug. The base plug is rounded and protrudes about an inch past the end of the horn. The spout has two raised rings near the tip and the area where the body meets the spout is engrailed. The horn is engraved with eight small buildings, a pentagonal fort likely representing Fort Crown Point, and a fort likely representing the ruins of Fort St. Frederick. Inscription reads: "NOVEMBER 5 daY of 1776/ ELISHA PRESC/ AT/ HIS HORN MADE AT/ MOUNT independence/ I HAM/ CROWN POYINT/ FORTE 1766".ProvenanceBecause of the short time it was in existence, powder horns from Mount Independence are scarce. No history of Elisha Presscott has been found. However, the other name on the horn is recorded as a private from Massachusetts named Isaac Ham, who served from September to December 1755 at Crown Point in Lawrence White’s Company in Col. Bourn’s Regiment. Along the eastern shore of Lake Champlain, American troops in 1776 built a fort complex named Mount Independence across the Hudson River from Fort Ticonderoga. The construction started in June 1776 and it was evacuated by the Americans in July 1777, after which British and German forces occupied it. The fortifications were burned by the British forces before retreating northward after learning of the defeat of Gen. Burgoyne at Saratoga.
ca. 1775